While you were busy digesting turkey and playing with your smartphone, a remarkable thing happened to American culture. More people shopped online than in stores on Black Friday this year, according to Adobe Systems, a remarkable digital milestone. And, as you might imagine, a disaster for old-fashioned stores. It’s time to [Keep reading]
The following is excerpted from the new book The Debt-Free Degree by John F. Wasik. The ebook is available on Amazon.com and other sites. You can conquer the student debt beast by saving early and often – if you’re in a position to do so. We opened up Section 529 [Keep reading]
Reports of Black Friday’s demise have been greatly exaggerated, and if you doubt that, show up at a big box retailer at 3 a.m. this Friday. But it’s undeniable that the shine around shopping’s biggest day has dulled a little, and that shows up in the data. Last year, 134 [Keep reading]
Nearly one-third of U.S. workers describe themselves as “free agents,” and talk of the “gig economy” has grown so loud that it’s an issue in the presidential campaign. As more people look online for work that supplements —or replaces — their old-fashioned paycheck and helps pay down debts, it seems [Keep reading]
If you want to know why home prices are out of whack in America, look at our lousy schools. One oft-overlooked element of home pricing is the scarcity of good public schools in America. Overlooked by everyone except young families, of course, who know quite well how much good “free” schools cost. [Keep reading]
Life in up-and-coming cities like Raleigh, Jacksonville and Memphis might not be quite as inexpensive as you’ve heard. At least not if you are a renter. It’s another reason you might feel Restless. Recently, Credit.com examined markets in America with the highest (and lowest) rates of housing-poor residents. Generally, analysts [Keep reading]
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I talked to NBC’s Pete Williams yesterday about the encryption debate that has raged since the Paris terror attacks. The debate got additional legs when New York District Attorney Cyrus Vance released a white paper Wednesday arguing that Apple and Google should be forced to include backdoors in their smartphones. [Keep reading]
Hey parents! You won’t believe the contracts your kids have been roped into. Like a fine print virus spreading quickly around the globe, under-aged teen-agers are suddenly being shrink-wrapped into contracts of dubious enforceability all around the web. The situation highlights a conundrum for companies targeting the 13-17 crowd: how [Keep reading]
It’s natural to look for a scapegoat after something terrible happens, like this: If only we could read encrypted communications, perhaps the Paris terrorist attacks could have been stopped. It’s natural, but it’s wrong. Read every story you see about Paris carefully and look for evidence that encryption played a role. There’s a [Keep reading]
Bob Sullivan